


Say You'll Be There

by amirellani



Series: this love left a permanent mark [1]
Category: Actor RPF, American Actor RPF, Marvel Cinematic Universe RPF
Genre: ALL the tags, Angst, Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, F/M, Loss of Parent(s), Minor Character Death, Swearing, i don't know what i'm doing with the tags, not really all the tags
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-21
Updated: 2015-11-21
Packaged: 2018-05-02 16:46:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,067
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5255897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amirellani/pseuds/amirellani
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Cassie answers a phone call that changes her life, her first thought is to go at it alone. Sebastian reminds her that she doesn't have to.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Say You'll Be There

**Author's Note:**

> Obviously I don't own Sebastian Stan. I've never met Sebastian Stan. I will probably never meet Sebastian Stan. I do own Cassie, her extended family and the police officer.
> 
> This is completely a work of fiction, based on an Imagine my best friend came up with to torment me. I think it turned out pretty well for both of us, if I do say so myself.
> 
> This is the first time I've published a RPF, so please be nice.

“Shit! Ouch, dammit!”

The phone was ringing. In her rush to answer it, Cassie walked shin-first into the coffee table. She hopped the rest of the way on one leg, her lips pressed together in a thin line. She grabbed the cordless handset just as it stopped ringing, and jabbed at the answer button urgently.

“No, don’t you dare go to voicemail,” Cassie hissed. “Not after the sacrifice I made to get over here – hello?”

“ _Hello? Am I speaking with Cassandra Coleman?”_

“Yeah, that’s me.”

She didn’t recognise the voice. Sitting down at the kitchen table, Cassie looked at her leg mournfully. A large, purple bruise had already blossomed on her shin. She’d be feeling that one for at least the next week.

_“Cassandra, this is Officer Ellis with the Columbus Police Department. Is someone with you right now?”_

Cassie frowned. “No. My partner won’t be home for a couple of hours. What’s this about, please?”

_“I’m very sorry to be doing this over the phone, Cassandra, but we thought it would be best that you were notified as soon as possible. I’m calling about your father – Walter Coleman?”_

She stiffened. Icy dread washed over her body. Her grip on the phone tightened, and her mouth dried out in an instant.

“Yes. What’s – what’s happened?”

_“Your father was involved in a car accident earlier this morning. He was hit by a driver running a red light, and was killed instantly. I’m so sorry.”_

It was suddenly impossible for Cassie to breathe. This couldn’t be happening. Her father was – no, he couldn’t be dead. She’d talked to him just yesterday, just finalised the plans for their visit that weekend.

“Are – are you sure?” she forced out, barely recognising her own voice. “He – _are you sure_?”

“ _Yes. We’ve made a positive identification_ ,” said the man apologetically.

Lips pursed, Cassie nodded for no one to see. She wiped at her damp cheeks and swallowed thickly.

“Okay,” she said, as firmly as she could manage. “What do I – I’m in New York but I’ll be in Columbus this weekend. Can I – will the…”

Her voice started to wobble and she cut herself off abruptly. As she took a few deep breathes to steady herself, Officer Ellis answered the question she hadn’t been able to finish.

“ _You’ll be able to make funeral arrangements over the phone,_ ” he said, kindly and sympathetically. She nodded again.

“Good. Um. Is there anything else I need to – take care of?”

“ _Not now. The hospital will release your father to the funeral home of your choice. If you can come to the police station at some point while you’re in the city, we can sort out everything else then.”_

Cassie listened numbly as the officer spoke, writing down the contact information he gave her for the hospital and the Police Department. She thanked him, listened to his condolences again, and hung up. She stood, forcing her heavy limbs to move as she crossed the kitchen to return the handset. Her hand was trembling, and it took longer than usual to set the phone down in the base. She stood, staring at the phone until her vision blurred. That was when it really hit her.

Cassie crumpled to the floor, sliding down the kitchen cabinets. She buried her head in her hands, fingers tangling in her blonde hair and fingernails digging into her scalp. A terrible noise filled the kitchen – a devastated wailing accompanying each of her heaving, choking sobs.

She cried. She cried until she couldn’t breathe, cried until she was exhausted, to the point where she couldn’t lift her arms anymore and she had no more tears left to cry with, and then she cried some more. Finally, when she just didn’t have it in her to keep crying, Cassie’s sobs dwindled to slow, ragged breaths. Her lungs burned as she forced air into them. Whimpering weakly, Cassie pressed the heels of her palms into her eyes.

Her father was dead. _Her father was dead_. This couldn’t be happening, it just couldn’t. He couldn’t be dead. He wasn’t even sixty yet. He was everything to her, all she’d had for so many years since her mother died. A handful of words over the phone and he was gone, just like that.

She whimpered again, rubbing her eyes. Apparently she had a few tears left, after all. She had to contact people, her aunts, her uncle, her father’s friends… She had to plan a funeral. She had to tell Sebastian. _Oh God_. How was she supposed to tell Sebastian that they wouldn’t spend the weekend in Columbus spending time with her father, but saying goodbye to him instead? She just couldn’t.

Cassie glanced at the oven-clock. He wouldn’t be home for at least another hour. She pushed herself up from the floor, swaying a little on stiff legs, and headed into the bathroom.

Her reflection stared back at her from the mirror, looking unsurprisingly awful. She’d never been the prettiest crier, and she’d never cried so terribly before in her life. Her cheeks were blotchy, her green eyes red-rimmed, and her hair was a rat’s-nest on top of her head. Cassie bit her lip, and twisted the faucet. She splashed cold water on her face vigorously, and was relieved when some of the blotchiness faded.

She couldn’t tell Sebastian. He was busy with a project at the moment, and he’d only scraped the free time to go away that weekend because they were nearly done with filming. If she told him, she knew his focus would immediately be on her, to help in whatever she needed. She couldn’t let him do that.

She reached for her hairbrush. Sixty-eight minutes later, Sebastian walked into the apartment with a cheerful, “Hey beautiful, did you miss me?”

When he kissed her hello, there was nothing on Cassie’s face to show that she’d been crying.

 

* * *

 

Sebastian knew something was bothering Cassie. Three years together had made him an expert at reading her facial expressions, especially when she purposefully kept her face blank. It was her trademark way of pretending that nothing was wrong but Sebastian knew better.

At first glance, nothing was different.

She greeted him in the hallway and half-jumped into his arms, just as she always did. Maybe she hugged him a little more tightly than usual, but at first Sebastian paid it no mind. He kissed her softly, and frowned at her fraction’s hesitation in returning the kiss.

When they broke apart, Sebastian rubbed his nose against Cassie’s. He chuckled when her face crinkled up. She always pretended to hate the Eskimo kisses, but he knew she secretly loved them. Cassie pulled back and rested her cheek on his chest, sighing contentedly.

“How was work?” she asked, not making any move to leave his arms.

“Long. Good. Fun,” he answered. “I think this will be a good one.”

Cassie snorted.

“Hey, what’s that about?”

“Don’t pout! You’re an idiot, Bash,” Cassie teased, not withdrawing from his chest. “You’re in it. Of course it’ll be a good one.”

“I’m not pouting,” said Sebastian, trying and failing to remove the pout from his face. “And I’m not an idiot. I’m a dork, yes. A walking human disaster, yes. But I’m not an idiot.”

“No, of course not,” said Cassie condescendingly. “Most of the time.”

“Cassie,” he whined. “Stop being mean.”

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry,” she said with a giggle. Pulling back, she stretched up on her toes to peck him on the lips.

“How was your day?”

For a split second Cassie stiffened. Her smile suddenly looked forced. She slipped out of his arms and started walking to the kitchen. Sebastian trailed behind her. He had no idea what had just happened.

“Cass?”

She threw a bright smile back at him over her shoulder.

“It was fine. Work, you know? Things happened, I made phone calls about them. I was going to make a stir-fry for dinner, is that okay?”

“Yeah, sure.”

He leaned against the doorframe, running his hand through his hair. He watched as Cassie moved around the kitchen. He was sure she was purposefully not looking at him, and he frowned again.

“Cassie, babe, is everything all right?”

She stopped moving, and glanced in his direction. She looked confused.

“Yeah? Why wouldn’t it be?”

He studied her face closely, and shrugged.

“No reason. You just – you know you can tell me anything, right?”

For a moment, Sebastian thought she was going to tell him what was bothering her. It was clear that something was, no matter what she said to the contrary. But she didn’t. Her lips twitched into a smile.

“I know, Bash.” She turned back to the cutting board. “Will you live if I put cashews in the stir-fry?”

Sebastian let out a long-suffering sigh.

“I suppose I’ll find a way to deal with it.”

He walked up behind Cassie and slipped his arms around her waist. He rested his chin on her shoulder, and she leaned her head against his briefly. The knife in her hand, slicing a capsicum into matchsticks, faltered for the smallest of moments. Sebastian didn’t comment. When his arms tightened around her waist, Cassie didn’t comment on that either.

 

* * *

 

In the following days, Cassie felt like she was trying to move through a heavy fog every time she rolled out of bed. She battled her way through the work, and the few hours she had to herself before Sebastian got home were spent on the phone to Ohio. She took care of informing her relatives first. The calls to her Aunts and Uncles didn’t go nearly as smoothly as the call to the funeral home would, later.

Unlike Cassie, who had been an only child, Walter Coleman had been the third of four, with two older sisters and a younger brother. Even though all three still lived in Columbus, Cassie had been listed as her father’s next of kin. It was up to her to tell her Uncle and Aunts about what had happened.

Uncle Andrew had taken it best. That was why she’d started with him. He hadn’t cried – at least, not on the phone with Cassie. He’d asked if she was being serious, and his voice cracked when Cassie told him she was. She’d told him how her father had died, and told him that she was arranging the funeral for the weekend. He told her to call if she needed anything; anything at all, and only let Cassie hang up when she promised she would.

Listening to her Aunts’ sobbing over the phone made it hard for Cassie to breathe. She’d called her Aunt Helen first. Helen was the oldest. It just made sense. But Cassie hadn’t counted on her Aunt Cheryl being at Helen’s house when she called.

“ _Cassie, sweetie! How are you? You’re still visiting this weekend, aren’t you? Your Dad hasn’t talked about anything else for weeks._ ”

“Auntie Helen,” said Cassie thickly. “Is Uncle Ron at home with you right now?”

“ _No? He’s working, honey. But your Aunt Cheryl is here._ ”

Cassie swallowed. “Auntie, I have something to tell you. You should – you should sit down.”

She could almost hear her Aunt’s confusion through the phone.

“ _Okay, I’m sitting down. What’s wrong, Cassie?_ ”

“I’m still coming this weekend, but – but not for a visit. Dad’s – Dad’s dead, Auntie Helen. He died yesterday. I’ll be coming for the funeral.”

Silence had crackled over the phone between them, before her Aunt found her voice again.

“ _No, Cassie. He can’t be – no._ ”

“He is. I’m sorry, Auntie,” Cassie forced out, choking back tears at the sound of her Aunt crying. There was a muffled noise and then Cheryl’s voice was on the other end of the line.

“ _Cassie?_ ”

Cassie sniffled, wiping her eyes. “Hi, Auntie Cheryl.”

“ _What’s –_ ”

“ _Walter’s dead!_ ” wailed Helen.

“ _Is that true?_ ”

“Yeah. His funeral will be this weekend,” said Cassie. Cheryl started crying before Cassie said anything else. “I’ll let you know when.”

“ _Okay. Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry._ ”

“Yeah,” mumbled Cassie. “Me too.”

She took some time to compose herself before she called the Funeral Home. They were very understanding, especially when Cassie told them that she was out of state. She gave them as much information as possible about how she wanted the service to go, and left the rest of it up to them to organise. They promised to exchange emails, to fine-tune the details, but if she pushed it out of her mind Cassie could almost pretend she wasn’t arranging her father’s funeral.

 

* * *

 

She was in the kitchen when Sebastian got home, leaning on the countertop with the phone plastered to her ear. Without looking at him, Cassie held a finger up to Sebastian. Obediently he stayed quiet and walked over, wrapping his arms around her waist. He began kissing down the side of her neck, lifting her hair to one side as he progressed.

“Yeah, that all sounds good – _Sebastian, stop it_! Thank you, bu-bye.”

She hung up the phone, setting it down on the counter and spinning around. She jabbed Sebastian in the chest with her finger.

“Sebastian!” she hissed. “That was an important phone call!”

He shrugged, laughing and tilting his head down to kiss her. Cassie pulled back from the kiss after their lips had barely touched, glowering at him.

“Aw, come on babe, you were fine,” he said softly, planting another kiss on her. “Who was it, anyway?”

A shadow flickered across Cassie’s face. She shrugged, slipping out of Sebastian’s arms and opening the fridge.

“Just someone from work. Do you want coffee?”

“Yeah, sure.”

Sebastian’s eyes followed his girlfriend around the kitchen as she fiddled with the coffee machine. A few minutes later Cassie passed him a mug, and Sebastian sipped from it happily. Buying that blueberry coffee syrup had been the best decision he’d ever made.

“Hey,” he began, as Cassie drank from her own, non-blueberry latte. “The rest of the crew are going out for drinks tonight. Last week, and all that. I thought we could go together.”

Cassie hesitated.

“It sounds like fun, Bash, but I have an important article to finish. You should still go, though.”

He knew she was lying.

“You can’t blow off the article until tomorrow?”

“No. The deadline is tomorrow. If I want to have time to proofread it, I need to get it done tonight,” she explained slowly.

Sebastian’s mouth twisted.

“We haven’t been out in weeks, Cass.”

“I know, I’m sorry,” she mumbled, staring into her drink. “But I really need to get this piece done.”

Sebastian looked at her for a moment, and then shrugged.

“Okay. If you’re sure you can’t come –”

“I’m _sure_.”

“– I guess I’ll just go by myself.”

“Good,” said Cassie. “You should go. I don’t want you to miss out on it because of me, Bash.”

“I know,” he said, smiling thinly at the dregs of his latte. “Besides, there’s always the next time, right?”

 

* * *

 

“Boo!”

Cassie shrieked. Pressing one hand to her chest, right above her heart racing, she grabbed a couch cushion with the other. She twisted and walloped Sebastian with said cushion. He jumped over the back of the couch, landing beside Cassie. He was cackling with laughter, and Cassie hit him again.

“God damn it, Sebastian! That wasn’t funny!”

Wiping tears of laughter from his eyes, Sebastian shook his head.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. It was hilarious. You could have broken a window with that yell.”

She glared at him, crossing her arms over her chest.

“You’re a jerk.”

“Alright, alright,” he said, still laughing. “You’re right, beautiful. It wasn’t funny. I’m sorry.” He leaned back on the couch, and glanced at Cassie’s laptop. He frowned. “What are you doing?”

As he watched, Cassie reached across and slammed the lid of her laptop shut. She gathered it into her arms and stood up quickly.

“None of your business,” she muttered. She stalked out of the room, leaving a puzzled Sebastian on the couch.

“Cassie? Babe, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing!” she shouted back. “You work out dinner. You’re still a jerk!”

His face scrunched in confusion. What had just happened?

 

* * *

 

In the bedroom, Cassie flopped backwards on to the bed. She dropped her laptop onto the quilt beside her and covered her eyes with one arm. She drew in a deep, shaky breath. She’d been horrible to Sebastian just now, all because he’d nearly seen that she was emailing the funeral home about the finalised time for her father’s service on Sunday. She’d overreacted badly, and he was almost definitely going to want an explanation.

But she couldn’t give him one, not yet.

Maybe she was being ridiculous, not telling Sebastian what had happened. Telling him was going to make it real, and as soon as it became really real, Cassie knew she wasn’t going to be able to function properly. Sebastian would immediately drop everything to help her, and his project would suffer for it.

Rolling over, Cassie buried her face in the quilt. No. She had to do this on her own, at least for now. She couldn’t do that to Sebastian. She couldn’t put that kind of burden on him, not when he was in the last few days of filming. She could manage on her own until then.

She had to.

 

* * *

 

Cassie went straight to bed after dinner that night. She was asleep by the time Sebastian crawled in beside her, stirring only when he draped an arm over her hip. She mumbled incoherently in her sleep when he kissed the back of her neck, and wriggled back into him.

Sebastian pursed his lips, the expression hidden in the darkness of the bedroom. Something was going on, and Cassie was hiding it from him. He could see it in her face every time he hugged her. He could feel it in the few kisses they’d shared over the last few days. Even that was an indication that something was wrong. He and Cassie had always had a very affectionate, tactile relationship. Now, he was lucky if she didn’t flinch every time he brushed up against her.

He just didn’t understand why she wasn’t talking to him. They shared everything, they always had. It didn’t make sense.

Sighing, Sebastian pulled Cassie flush against his chest. She smiled in her sleep. It was the first legitimate smile to cross her face in days. He closed his own eyes, and let the soft sound of her breathing lull him to sleep.

They could talk about it in the morning.

 

* * *

 

“Cassie –”

“I’m fine, Sebastian. Stop asking me!”

“But, Cassie –”

“No!”

The front door slammed behind her, leaving Sebastian alone in their apartment.

 

* * *

 

Cassie was still in a foul mood when she returned from work. Beating her home, Sebastian had ordered pizza. As they waited for it to arrive, Cassie changed into the sweats she slept in, making it clear that she was planning on going to bed directly after dinner.

She ate one slice of pizza in half an hour, sipping moodily from her Diet Coke and avoiding looking anywhere near Sebastian. Swallowing the last of her crust, Cassie pushed her chair away from the table. She carried her plate to the sink, dropping it with a clatter, and left the kitchen.

Sebastian heard the door to their home-office shut and he groaned, pushing his own plate away from him. This was getting ridiculous. He didn’t follow after her straight away. Instead he took his time in the kitchen, loading their plates into the dishwasher and storing the leftover pizza in the fridge. When that was done, he took five minutes to rearrange the spice rack in the pantry. Sebastian drew the line at alphabetizing it, though. He headed for the office and knocked on the door.

“Cassie?”

There was no answer.

“Cass, come on, we need to talk.”

This time he heard footsteps, before the door swung open. Cassie glared at him.

“What?” she snapped.

Sebastian looked down at her appraisingly, arching an eyebrow.

“You wanted to talk. Talk.”

“What’s going on, Cassie?”

“Nothing’s going on.”

“What’s happened?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said coolly, crossing her arms and tapping her foot. “I have work to finish, could you start making sense?”

Sebastian huffed.

“Something is bothering you. Why won’t you talk to me?”

“Because nothing is bothering me.”

“Stop lying to me, Cassandra!”

“I’m not lying to you! What proof do you have that something is bothering me?”

“You didn’t want to go out to drinks with me.”

“I’ve been busy! What, you’re the only one in this relationship who’s allowed to be busy now?” Cassie snarled.

“Of course you’re allowed to be busy!”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“You’ve been avoiding me! Even when we spend time together, it’s like you’re not even there!”

“Fuck you. I’m not avoiding you, Sebastian! I’ve been busy! It’s not like you’re unfamiliar with the concept!” she flung back at him

“Yeah, you’ve been busy blowing me off, making mysterious phone calls, and sending emails that you don’t want to talk about,” shouted Sebastian, finally losing his temper. “What, are you cheating on me?”

Cassie looked at him like his words had slapped her.

“Of course not!” she yelled back at him. “I wouldn’t! Damn it, Sebastian, I wouldn’t do that to you and you fucking know it!”

“ _Dracului iad_ ,” Sebastian muttered, wiping a hand over his face. “I know. I know you wouldn’t, I’m sorry, Cass.” ( _Fucking hell_ )

“You fucking better be,” she growled back at him. “How dare you?”

“I’m sorry!” he repeated. “Look, Cassie, please, could we just – could we just sit down and talk about this?”

“I already told you, there’s nothing to talk about.”

She went to shut the door, but Sebastian stopped it with his arm.

“We’re getting on a plane tomorrow and flying for two hours to visit your father, Cassandra. Do you really want to spend the entire weekend with whatever the fuck this is hanging between us?” Sebastian said frostily.

He instantly knew he’d touched on something. Up until that point, her face had been lined with anger. As soon as he mentioned their trip, Cassie shut down. She wiped her face blank, but he was sure he heard her choke on a sob.

“Cass?” he ventured, when she didn’t answer him. Her chin jutted out stubbornly and she pushed past him. She stalked down the hall. Sebastian half-jogged after her, reaching for her arm as he caught up to her. “Cass, what’s wrong?”

She jerked her arm out of his hold and kept walking, flinging open the door to the bedroom. Following her inside, Sebastian grabbed her by the arm again.

“I’m going to bed, Sebastian. Leave me alone,” said Cassie stonily.

Sebastian chose to ignore her, and pulled her around to face him. She fought to break his grip, peeling at his fingers with her free hand until he took hold of that one as well. That didn’t stop her from struggling, trying to break out of his hold, but the muscles in his arms weren’t just for show.

Cassie kept her face hidden and stared down at her feet as she squirmed, until Sebastian pushed her back onto the bed. Pinning her wrists above her head with one hand, he used his bodyweight to hold her down. For one brief moment, Cassie met his eyes. Then she squeezed them shut, but not fast enough to avoid letting him see the tears pooling in her eyes. Propping himself up on an elbow, just enough so that he wasn’t crushing her, Sebastian pressed his forehead to Cassie’s.

“Cassie, baby, please,” he begged. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

The pleading in his voice, the compassion bleeding out of him, caused a stabbing pain in Cassie’s chest. Opening her eyes slowly, she felt the tears start to slide down her cheeks. Sebastian’s face was inches away, his eyes staring into hers. They were much bluer than she remembered, full of so much devotion. Cassie felt her bottom lip begin to quiver.

“Daddy’s dead,” she choked out. “He’s – he’s – we’re not going to Ohio to visit, Bash. We’re going for his funeral.”

Her words rang out between them. Blinking, Sebastian released her wrists. He shifted his weight to rest on both of his elbows, and cupped her face gently. The kiss he placed on her forehead was barely there, feather light, and before Cassie could stop it a strangled sob escaped her. It was followed by another, and then another, until Cassie was crying properly for the first time since she’d answered Officer Ellis’s phone call.

Sebastian slid an arm carefully under her back. Vision blurred by tears, Cassie felt rather than saw him roll off of her. With his arm around her waist, the motion swapped their positions. Lying on top of Sebastian, Cassie tangled her fingers in his shirt as his arm tightened around her waist. His other hand cupped the back of her head, smoothing her hair as she hid her face in his neck.

“It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you,” he murmured.

Cassie wasn’t sure what hurt more. Her sobs ripped through her as she tried to bury herself in Sebastian’s chest. Each one felt like another splinter of broken glass begin forced into her lungs. At the same time, she felt like her heart was completely shattered. Her father was dead. She was never going to hear his voice again. She was never going to see him, or hug him, or update him on what was going on in her life, ever again.

_He wasn’t going to be at her wedding to walk her down the aisle._

With that thought came a fresh flood of tears, and Sebastian’s Henley was soon a much darker shade of grey. His arm tightened around her waist, holding her steady as sobs wracked her body.

“Let it out, Cass,” said Sebastian soothingly. “I’m right here, I’ve got you.”

“Hurts,” she whimpered.

“I know, baby, I know. But it’ll get better, I promise. It’ll stop hurting so much.”

Cassie cried, letting all of the tears she’d been bottling up since the first phone call soak into Sebastian’s shirt. Sebastian just held her tightly, his own heart breaking for the woman he loved.

Eventually her tears slowed down, and at some point Cassie fell asleep, still lying on top of Sebastian. He reached up the bed for a pillow and somehow maneuvered it under his head, all without waking Cassie. Shifting her slightly, so that her elbow wasn’t digging into his spleen, Sebastian closed his eyes. It didn’t matter that they’d left the bedroom light on. With Cassie in his arms, that was all he needed to drift off to sleep.

 

* * *

 

Still half-asleep, Cassie frowned and squirmed. Her pillow was warmer than usual and the bed was too firm. It rumbled beneath her, and the distant sound of a chuckle reached her ears. She opened her eyes blearily, and realised that she was draped across Sebastian’s body rather than sprawled out in bed. The events of last night rushed back to her in startling clarity and she whined, hiding her face in Sebastian’s shirt again.

“No, you don’t,” Cassie heard him whisper, and then she was rolled onto her side. Opening her eyes again, Cassie was a little startled to find Sebastian’s face just an inch away from hers. He closed the distance between them to press a brief kiss to her lips, before he pulled back. Cassie wanted to look away, but she couldn’t get her eyes to obey her.

“Hey, beautiful,” murmured Sebastian, pressing his forehead to Cassie’s. “How are you feeling?”

“Raw,” she replied hoarsely. “Bash, I – I’m sorry.”

“No, baby, no,” he said, his voice quiet and insistent. “I wish you’d talked to me, but don’t apologise. You’re grieving, Cass.”

“I should have told you.”

Sebastian hesitated. “Yeah, you should have. That’s what I’m here for, Cassie.”

“I couldn’t,” Cassie mumbled, tears streaking down her cheeks again. “If – I knew if I told you, it would make it real. I wasn’t ready for it to be real. I’m still not.”

He kissed her again, lips lingering this time.

“I know,” he murmured. “But I could have helped. I’m going to help now, Cass. Try and stop me.”

The giggle left Cassie before she could stop it.

“I won’t. I know better.”

“I should hope so,” huffed Sebastian, lips curling up. Cassie yawned widely. “Go back to sleep, baby. I called work for you. Our flight isn’t until tonight.”

“Okay,” she slurred, wriggling closer to Sebastian. Pressed tightly to Sebastian, his body heat washed over her. Warm, comfortable, and feeling a little less weight on her shoulders, she sank back into a deep sleep.

 

* * *

 

Cassie pulled her cardigan more tightly around her body as she twisted, trying to make herself comfortable in the stiff chair. They’d been flying for just over half an hour already. She’d never enjoyed it, even though Sebastian insisted on flying First Class wherever they went – “It’s not me insisting, it’s my agent!” She wriggled again, and glanced up when he reached out and took hold of her hand.

“Are you cold?” asked Sebastian quietly. “Do you want my jacket?”

She stared down at his fingers, intertwined with hers, and shook her head.

“No. I’m not cold,” she replied, just as quietly. She bit her lip, and rested her head on his shoulder. He was so warm, so solid beside her. Sebastian rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand. “I don’t – I don’t want to _do_ this, Bash.”

“I know, beautiful. I know. But I know you can do this, and I’ll be with you the whole time,” he said sincerely, squeezing her hand. Cassie squeezed back, nodding into his shoulder.

She was flying to her hometown, her boyfriend of three years by her side. Instead of spending the weekend visiting her father, she was going to be burying him. It was too soon. He wouldn’t be there to see her get married; he wouldn’t be there to meet his grandchildren. He wouldn’t answer the phone when she called; he wouldn’t send her emails full of the cat memes he found absolutely hilarious. He wouldn’t be there for her anymore.

But Cassie had Sebastian, and as long as she had him, she knew everything was going to be okay.

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "Lightweight" - Demi Lovato


End file.
